


Home for the Holidays

by Codydarkstalker



Series: In A Better World (Deep Dish Nine) [5]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek Deep Space Nine
Genre: Deep Dish Nine, F/M, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-30
Updated: 2015-11-30
Packaged: 2018-05-04 02:24:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5316968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Codydarkstalker/pseuds/Codydarkstalker
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At Deep Dish Nine everyone is getting ready for the holiday season.</p><p>Series of holiday related drabbles with different characters and pairings.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

A Home For The Holidays

The day after Thanksgiving, Christmas was in full swing at Deep DIsh Nine. Sisko, Julian learned, was a very big fan of holidays. Every year he went all out making the pizzeria a special place, decorating not just for Christmas but for the Bajoran winter holiday as well, since they overlapped. That Friday he spent the day helping Sisko, Jadzia, Kira and Worf decorate the restaurant. 

Kira was given the job of decorating for the Bajoran holiday, which loosely translated into The Light Festival. She spent the morning outside directing Worf, telling the large man exactly how to hang the lights. This year she had gone for an all white color scheme. The lights lined the large windows and hung from the line of the roof in little strands that looked like icicles. They sparked, the lights blinking on and off, and Kira smiled wider than Julian had ever seen before. 

Inside, Jadzia and Julian were put to work. Jake and his friends Nog and Ziyal came over and spent the afternoon cutting out paper snowflakes which Julian taped onto every available surface. Jadzia had the job of frosting the windows were soap and drawing patterns of snowflakes and frost on them. Then they got to work redoing the chalkboards that sat outside the restaurant, switching the normal drink offers to reflect the new winter drink selections and listing the new holiday dessert specials.

Sisko had created a number of winter themed special for the restaurant. There were peppermint bark cheesecake pops and calzones filled with seasonal vegetables. Mr. Sisko also had a great deal set up with Quark’s to serve hot mulled cider. Worf didn’t celebrate Christmas but he was happy enough to help out with the menu changes.

When Sisko came out of the kitchen to look around, he was excited by what he saw. Deep Dish Nine looked cheery and festive. He handed out a pile of flyers listing holiday hours and specials, instructing them to pin them up around town when they had a chance. 

It was shocking to see the difference between how Sisko celebrated, and how Quark did. Quark’s Bar was decked out in lights just as bright as the ones on the facade of Deep Dish NIne, but where Kira had chosen tasteful white lights, Quark had gone for the exact opposite. He had ordered over a dozen boxes of the brightest multicolor lights and ordered Rom to hang them on every available surface. 

Inside the bar Nog had hung tinsel on everything. The multicolor lights and tinsel made the place look like a disco ball had exploded, leaving glittering detritus everywhere. The shelves where the bottles were stored had been covered in a fluffy layer of cotton batting to mimic snow. There were loud pop music renditions of Christmas carols blaring from every speaker in the place, and the noise could be heard all the way out in the street. 

The best part of the whole thing was Rom though. Quark had commissioned Garak to make a Santa suit for his brother, and it was amazing. The thing was a work of art, a crushed red velvet shirt and pants with white faux fur trim and gold stitching. The belt had a beautiful pattern of snowflakes etched into it. The hat was large (big enough to hide Rom’s ears, which was impressive) and lined with the same thick faux fur as the suit. At the end of the hat was a gold bell which would jingle cheerfully when Rom moved his head, and on the side were little buttons to hold the loops of the fake beard. Garak had even made a matching elf outfit for Nog to wear, crushed green velvet pants and a tunic, and a hat with a little silver bell. Nog didn’t like the outfit (Jake laughed when he first saw his friend wearing it), but he looked cute standing next to his dad, and they were good at attracting customers. 

Quark had them stand outside ringing bells and calling out to the people passing by on the street. At first Quark had given Rom a big metal bowl for people to put change into, like the Santas on other street corners had, but Odo had put a stop to that soon enough, and made Quark donate the money he did get to the war orphan foundation. 

The days leading up to Christmas Quark had a big hand written sign outside the bar.  
“Come in and have a picture with Santa! Free with the purchase of any drink!” The edges of the sign had been been dusted with gold glitter, and the lettering lines in sparkly puff paint. It was obviously Leeta’s work.

It worked surprisingly well. The bar was crowded each night with people eager to get a picture with Rom and Nog in their outfits. Jadzia got one where she was sitting on Rom’s lap, Worf standing behind her with his normal scowl. Jake took one with just Nog (he bought a root beer at the bar), and set it as the background on his phone, laptop and as the profile picture for every social media website he used. Julian hadn’t planned on taking a picture, but Mr. Sisko decided to take the entire staff over to the bar for a drink and have them pose for a picture together. He used it as his Christmas card that year, and it was perfect. A frowning Kira was perched on Rom’s left knee, a smiling Jadzia on the right, both in their bright red uniform shirts. Behind them stood Ben and Worf in their aprons. Julian crouched down next to Nog on the side of them, his hat sitting slightly askew on his head.

When garak got his copy in the mail, he tacked it up on the wall next to his work table. If anyone asked he simply said he kept it because it was a good example of his craftsmanship. It certainly had nothing to do with the grin on Julian’s face, and the way the lights sparkled around him. Nothing at all.


	2. Chapter 2

We're A Couple Of Misfits

Nog took another handful of popcorn and shoved it into his mouth.

“I just don’t get these...Christmas specials. They’re just cartoons, old cartoons. Why are we watching these?” He turned from his spot on the floor and looked up at the taller boy.

They were sitting in Jake’s room in the Sisko family apartment. Jake was sprawled out on the bed and Nog was sitting on the floor cross legged, leaning back against the side of the bed. The room was a mess, the one place Mr. Sisko refused to clean. There was a mountain of clothes, clean and dirty, on the floor, and every horizontal surface was stacked high with half filled notebooks and mostly empty cans of soda. Sometimes the mess made Nog’s skin crawl. Jake had a bigger room than he did, and more nice things than Nog ever would, but he took such poor of everything. It would have driven him mad, if Jake wasn’t such a nice guy. Jake was sloppy, but he was also friendly, much more so than anyone else at their school. 

Nog hated school, hated it with every fiber of his being. The teachers ignored him, and the other students didn’t like him. he was picked on for being poor, for being short, for being ugly. People wrinkled their noses when they saw him, they snickered behind his back and said he smelled like cheap stale beer (they might have been right, he was in the bar so much he couldn’t even smell it anymore) and some even insisted his father and uncle must have been drunks. He laughed at the last one, because he knew whose parents were in the bar the most. He skipped school as much as he could get away with without catching the attention of the truancy officers. His father didn’t mind, it just meant he was available more to work in the bar after all, and they certainly needed the help.He had planned on dropping out as soon as he was old enough.

Jake was the only reason he had changed his mind, or at least, he was the first reason. They had been paired together in an English class for a joint paper writing assignment. Nog had been less than pleased when the teacher first paired them together, he had been hoping to get a chance to work with someone a bit...prettier. Jake Sisko was a nice guy but not the easiest on the eyes with the way he dressed. Nog was almost certain most of Jake’s wardrobes was made up of fabric reclaimed from old bus seats.

The project had gone surprisingly well though. Jake spent time after school in the bar, bringing over his lap top and a stack of books from the library. When it got late his dad would send over a worker from Deep Dish Nine with some pizza and soda and garlic knots. It was nice, Nog decided, spending time with someone from school. Jake was funny, and a better worker than Nog would have guessed. Jake was a little like him, he realized, the time he wasn’t in school he was working at the family business, he knew what real work was like, unlike the other kids at school. Jake was even nice when nog had trouble with some of the harder parts of the paper, and gave him some tips on how to format everything properly so he could get a better grade. By the end of the week they were spending more time talking than working, and after the project was handed in, Nog was happy to find that Jake still seemed more than willing to keep coming over and hanging out, and even invited Nog over to his apartment once in a while.

Which was how Nog found himself sitting on Jake’s messy floor watching Christmas specials. Jake had insisted that they spend the weekend after Thanksgiving watching as many of them as they could. Jake had a stack of old tapes with handwritten labels. His father had recorded them all off the television years ago, and Jake had dug the old VCR out of a box so they could watch them. He had laughed when Nog asked why they couldn’t just stream the movies off the internet like everyone else. Nog called him a hipster. 

Jake had excitedly popped the tape into the player and settled back onto the bed.   
“This is the best Christmas special ever made Nog, just watch, you’ll see.”

Nog rolled his eyes and took a sip from his can of root beer. “Sure, didn’t you say the same thing when we watched Home Alone last week?”

Jake snorted. “Home Alone is a Christmas movie, but NOT a Christmas special.”

“Is there a difference?” Nog asked.

Jake frowned and tossed a handful of popcorn at him. “There is a huge difference. now shut up and watch.”

Nog settled back and watched as the movie came on the screen. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. It was an old television special, at least a few decades old based on the quality of the picture. The little figurines were cute though, better than the modern computer animation for sure.

Nog settled back and watched, more than a little amused by the movie. The reindeer was familiar to him, but he had never seen the movie before. It was silly, but not all that bad. Then Hermey showed up.

Nog tensed as he watched the elf yelling and running around, acting like an idiot. Was this how Jake thought of him, like he was some sort of misfit little elf. He didn’t even want to be a dentist! Nog spared a quick glance to Jake, but the other teen was happily eating his snack, eyes trained on the screen, attention wholly absorbed by the movie. Nog decided he was going to punch him as soon as it was over. Who was Jake to make fun of him like this? He turned his attention back to the movie grudgingly. Rudolph was starting to sing with the elf.

Jake tapped Nog on the shoulder with his foot. “This is a good edit of the movie, sometimes they cut this song or replace it, but I’m a fan of this version. I think you’ll like it.”

Nog raised an eyebrow and then focused on the screen. The song wasn’t bad, the music sort of upbeat and fun. Better than the normal Christmas carols. Nog settled back, and then sat up a bit when he heard the lyrics.

“Seems to us kinda silly  
That we don't fit in.  
We may be different from the rest  
Who decides the test  
Of what is really best?  
We're a couple of misfits  
We're a couple of misfits  
What's the matter with misfits  
That's where we fit in!”

When Nog looks up at Jake again, the other boy’s eyes are off the screen, he’s looking right back at him. Jake smiled and held out the bowl of popcorn so Nog could grab another handful.

“Next we should watch the Charlie Brown special, that’s a good one.” 

Nog munched his popcorn and smiled. “Yeah, whatever you want Jake.”


	3. Chapter 3

Julian had just finished shoveling the snow along the sidewalk and salting the pavement when a man in a long black coat and expensive looking shoes pushed past him and into the pizza place. Julian spared a glance at the sleek black town car he had stepped out of, and for a moment catches the eye of a man still sitting inside. He had the window rolled down so he can smoke. The man, in perhaps his late thirties, was wearing a tailored suit and a bored expression, and when he saw Julian looking at him he sneered, tossed the butt out the window onto the ground, and rolled up the window. 

Julian rolled his eyes and started around the building, shaking off the bit of snow that had collected on his while he worked. The city seemed to be full of rich assholes, though they weren’t that common around Deep Dish Nine, seeing as it was a bit out of the way. He pushed the door open, stomped his feet to get the snow off and waved at Worf as he passed through the kitchen towards the front of house. It was mid afternoon and once he was done helping Kira clean up the counters and stack the empty pizza boxes, he would be able to take a break.

When he got to the front of the restaurant he was surprised to see Kira was not cleaning, instead she was glaring daggers at a tall, lean, man in an expensive looking suit. Julian realized after a moment he was the same man who had pushed past him on the sidewalk, he was holding his folded up coat under his arm.

“Nerys! How good to see you! It’s been too long.” The man, not one Julian had seen in the restaurant before, leaned across the counter, leering at Kira. 

The man was a good bit older than Kira, probably about the same age as Mr. Sisko. He had olive toned skin and dark hair slicked back from his face in a style similar to how Garak wore his. He was wearing a dark grey suit with flashy gold cufflinks, and had a matching tie pin in his dark green tie. 

Kir leaned back from the counter, visibly disgusted. “It hasn’t been long enough Dukat, now what do you want?” She turned her head slightly and caught Julian’s eye, jerking her chin slightly in a signal to go get the boss.

Dukat seemed to deflate a little bit. “Oh Nerys, so cold! I was just in the area checking up on some of my old properties, and I thought I would come in and see how business is doing.” He paused and made a show of looking around, sneering slightly at the holiday decor. 

Kira shot him an affronted look. “Oh don’t make that face Dukat, it looks nice in here and you know it.” She snatched one of the paper snowflakes away as he reached for it. “You might never have bothered to decorate for the holidays, but some people actually like it.”

Dukat pouted. “Oh Nerys, if you had asked nicely I certainly would have allowed decorations. I just would have made sure they were a bit more...tasteful, than the ones Benjamin put up.”

“Actually, Kira was largely in charge of decorations this year, “ Sisko said, stepping out of the back and taking off his apron. 

Dukat straightened up when he saw the other man, and offered another wide grin. “Ah, Benjamin, my old friend. I haven’t seen you in such a long time!” He reached over the counter and clapped a hand on Sisko’s shoulder. “How are you doing, how is the restaurant?”

Sisko carefully shrugged the other man’s hand off. “It’s doing just fine Dukat. In fact, business has been extra busy this week. I think the decorations and holiday specials are really pulling people in.”

Dukat looked a bit put out. “Well you know, I thought about doing holiday promotions when I owned the building, but the the property managers just didn’t think it was a good idea. You know, a lot of expense for what might not have been much profit.

Ben picked up one of the paper snowflakes, the one Kira had taken away from Dukat, and spun it around in his hand. “You know, Ziyal was nice enough to come by and help us decorate.” He held the snowflake up for Dukat to look at. It was cream colored paper carefully cut into a delicate latticework pattern. “She made most of the snowflakes.”

Dukat frowned and reached out to take the snowflake, cradling it delicately in his hands. “Ziyal made this?” He looked up at Kira.

She nodded and gestured around the restaurant. There were dozens of snowflakes, they had been taped up to every surface, and some had even been suspended from the ceiling using fishing line. “She really seemed to enjoy it, I don’t think she’s ever celebrated any of the Winter holidays before.”

Dukat looked around again, doubt written clearly on his face. Of course Ziyal hasn’t celebrated any of the winter holidays. her mother was Bajoran, but she died when Ziyak was little, and the foster families Ziyal spent her time with after that didn't bother with holidays, too complicated with that many kids. Now she’s living with her father, but Dukat has never thought about the holidays. He never celebrated Christmas with his family, it’s not much of a thing back in Cardassia, and he certainly never bothered with Bajoran holidays. 

Kira opened her mouth to say something else, but was cut off by the sound of the bell over the door. Jake and Nog tumbled through the door, laughing loudly. They were both covered in snow, and still clutching snowballs in their gloved hands. They leaned around the half open door and threw them, shouting loudly. A moment later there was an answering volley, and they held the door tightly closed, laughing even louder as the snowballs hit the glass instead of them. 

A moment later Ziyal and Alexander, Worf’s son, ran up to the door, yelling for Jake and Nog to come out. Both of the teens were covered in snow, cheeks flushed from the cold and from running. They looked like they were having fun. 

Jake and Nog jeered as Jake flipped the lock on the door, snickering as they started to run towards the kitchen, obviously planning on making a surprise attack from the back of the building.

“Jake!” Sisko shuted, bringing the the boys to a halt. 

They turned and looked up at the man guiltily. 

“Uh, hey Dad!” Jake smiled weakly.

“Hello sir,” Nog added, holding up a gloved hand in greeting. “I promise we will mop up any snow we tracked in.”

Sisko looked at them hard for a moment and then laughed, waving them ahead. “When you guys are done with your snowball fight make sure to invite the others in for some hot chocolate.” 

Both boys nodded quickly and then ran off, yelling about plans of attack. Julian just shook his head and headed for the back to get the mop and bucket so he could clean up the mess they made. Not that he blamed them, he was actually a bit jealous of their fun.

Dukat watched the scene with a look of shock on his face. “Was that...was that Ziyal just now?” He turned and gestured to the snow covered door. “Outside?”

Kira smiled. “Yeah, she comes by pretty often after school and on the weekends. I figured you knew.” She raised an eyebrow, obviously a bit pleased to know Ziyal better than her own father did. 

Ben nodded. “She’s a good girl, and she seems to really enjoy spending time with Jake, Nog and Alexander.” He forced a grin. “You know, it might be nice for her if you tried celebrating this year. I know most of the other kids she’s in school with will be celebrating Christmas or the Bajoran Light Festival.”

Dukat looked at him doubtfully. “I...I’m not sure. I’ve never celebrated Christmas, or the Bajoran Light Festival. Neither one is an observed holiday in Cardassia.” He looked at the paper snowflake again. “Although she does certainly seem fond of all this.”

Kira sighed and shook her head. “Alright Dukat. I will help. Just this once. The Bajoran festival begins this weekend. If you want...you can bring Ziyal to the temple I go to. And I can show her what the holiday is like.” 

Dukat grinned and opened his mouth to speak, but Kira cut him off with a harsh look.

“Dukat, do not go getting any funny ideas. I am only offering this because I like Ziyak and because I feel bad she doesn’t get to celebrate. It’s not her fault her mother passed before she could properly share her Bajoran heritage. Taking her to temple is the right thing to do, it is the will of the prophets.” She reached up and grabbed 

Dukat’s smile faded a bit and he nodded. “Well thank you, Kira. I am sure Ziyal will be thrilled when I tell her. She’s very fond of you too you know.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, there was a commotion from the back room. Jake, Nog, Ziyal and Alexander came through the kitchen door laughing and smiling. They had all taken off their winter coats and they were holding giant cups of hot cocoa and warm spiced cider. When Ziyak saw her father she froze and then broke into a warm smile, moving in to hug him. He wrapped the girl in his long arms, glancing up at Kira over her shoulder. 

Ziyal pulled back and smiled up at her father. He hair was damp from the melted snow and her cheeks were pink from the cold. “Look!” She spun around and pointed at all of the paper snowflakes. “Look what I did Daddy! Mr. Sisko and Nerys let me help decorate. I did the paper snowflakes.”

“We helped!” Nog and Jake protested, pointing at a few of the less than perfect snowflakes on the wall. 

Ziyal giggled. “Yeah if you can call that helping.” She stuck her tongue out at the boys. 

Dukat cleared his throat to get his daughter’s attention back. “Ziyal, I have some good news.” He waited for her to turn back around to him. “Kira here has been nice enough to offer us the pleasure of her company this weekend. She has invited us visit her temple with her, so we can celebrate the Bajoran Light Festival.” He smiled when he saw his daughter’s eyes light up. “She thought it would be nice for you to gain a better appreciation of Bajoran holidays, considering your heritage.” He gave Kira a sidelong glance. “Now, don’t you think you should thank Kira for being so kind?” 

Ziyal smiled widely and let out a happy squeal, turning to throw her arms around Kira across the counter. “Oh, Nerys, thank you so much!”

Dukat smiled and grabbed her by the arm when she let go. “Now, Ziyal, i think it might be time for us to go, we’ve imposed on Kira and Mr. Sisko long enough.” 

Ziyal pouted but obeyed her father, saying goodbye to Kira, Sisko and her friends. As her father helped her into her coat he leaned in and whispered in her ear. “Maybe on the way home we can stop and get a Christmas tree?”

Sisko smiled at the pair as they left. Dulat was certainly not his favorite person, but Ziyal was a good girl, and a good friend for Jake. He turned to Julian and raised an eyebrow at the young man’s face. “Have you not had the pleasure of Dukat’s company before?”

Julian shook his head, frowning. “No, I have not. He seems a bit…”

Kira interupted. “He’s an ass.”

Nog and Jake burst out into laughter at that. Sisko gave them a harsh look and they filed out, heading to the back to pester Worf for snacks and more cocoa. Sisko rolled his eyes and turned back to Julian.

“He is, in fact, a huge ass. He used to won this building, or manage it at least, and several others in the area. After the Cardassian Bajoran war the company he worked for downsized and this building and a number of others in the area were sold off. Now that the building is in a area getting more traffic, he’s bitter. So he takes every opportunity he can to come in and make a nuisance of himself.” Sisko sighed and rubbed a hand over the smooth dome of his head. “But as awful as he may be, his daughter is a lovely young lady.”

“Probably because Dukat didn’t raise her. He never had a chance to ruin her,” Kira interjected. “That man is a snake.”

Sisko nodded wearily, clearly used to this sort of outburst where Dukat was concerned. “I understand your feelings Kira. I’m sorry there’s not more I can do to make Dukat leave you alone. But I am glad you aren’t pushing away Ziyal because of him.”

Kira turned to look out the window. The sun had already begun to set, it went down earlier and earlier lately, and the sky was a pretty shade of dull orange. The snow, a flurry before, was coming down hard now, and it sparkled in the glow of the lights she had strung up outside. It was pretty, almost like the post cards they sold in the shop down the road. The sound of Christmas carols was leaking in from the wall the pizzeria shared with Quark’s Bar. 

She turned back to Julian and Sisko. “Yeah, well if being nice to Ziyal means being nice to Dukat, I guess I can live with it.” She smiled, more to herself than either of them.

Sisko grinned and clapped a hand on her shoulder. “Sounds like a Christmas miracle to me Kira.” He gave her arm a brief squeeze. “Now, how about a drink at Quark’s?”

Julian grinned and clapped his hands together. “Sounds great! I’m going to text Garak and see if he can join us.”

Kira groaned. ‘Oh, Julian! Haven’t I dealt with enough Cardassians today?”

“Kira…” Julian shot her a pouty look.

Kira’s shoulders slumped, but she smiled anyway. “Alright, alright. You can invite him if you want Julian.”

Sisko laughed loudly. “A Christmas miracle indeed.”


End file.
